Welcome to the Intellecy Blog, a place to ‘Get Smart’ about Intellecy, smart home technology, plumbing and many other subjects.

Every March the EPA promotes “Fix-a-Leak Week” to raise awareness throughout the nation. Household leaks waste 1 trillion gallons of water annually, nationwide. To put this into perspective, this is the equivalent to the annual water consumption of the households in San Diego, Los Angeles, Houston, and San Antonio combined. If that’s not enough to convince you that leaks are more than a once a year problem, consider that 40 out of 50 states expect a water shortage in the next 10 years. Even thoughCalifornia is officially free of drought after more than sevenyears, we don’t know how long we’ll be drought free. If you were one of the 40% of U.S. households that filed awater leak insurance claim last year, you know all about theinconvenience and the financial hit. Whether or not you’vediscovered a water leak, most people in North County are wondering why their water bills are so high. Unfortunately, many leaks go undetected for years because the source of the leak is not visible. Research shows that the typical home loses 2,000 to 20,000 gallons of water annually from leaks. Almost every leak starts small, and many remain unnoticed until a pipe bursts. Obviously, a pipe burst is [...]

By Heather L. Whitley, Senior Writer and Digital Producer, Forbes People waste it and fight over it, while globally more than 840 million still struggle to even get access to it. BluView detects when these signals fluctuate and alerts homeowners of potential leaks via their smartphones. ISTOCK In the United States, 40 of the country’s 50 states are expected to suffer water shortages by 2023. Meanwhile, household leaks are wasting 900 billion gallons of water annually nationwide. That’s the bad news. The good news is that entrepreneurs like Emilio Vargas II, president and CEO of San Diego-based Intellecy, Inc., are developing new smart home technologies to monitor, manage and reduce water use. “Our thought was to come out with a product that was environmentally friendly and environmentally conscious,” Vargas explained. “It would help people change their behaviors by providing them with real-time data on how much water they are using, wasting or consuming.” Getting A Clear View By the end of 2016, Intellecy had developed its first prototype of BluView, a sensor that fits onto a water pipe. The system’s water manager continuously measures and monitors water flow based on the sounds and energy signals that are created when water [...]

I've been asked several times, "Why / How did you come up with BluView?" The quick answer is because I've experienced 3 major water leaks throughout my life. Each time, I was out of the house when the leak occurred so you can imagine how bad the damage was. All three times, I questioned why there wasn't a way for me to be made aware of the leak. So as you can imagine, the development of BluView is personal. I wanted a solution that would "see" the water leak early and let me know about it quickly. At least early and quickly enough to protect my house the widespread damage. Because I was out of the house, the water ran and ran (and ran) until I came home to find a big and expensive mess. One time, my neighbor called me hysterically to let me know that water was flowing from under the front door. You can image how that call made me feel. Luckily I had a relative who lived nearby and was able to come over to shut off my water main. Needless to say, I came home to lots of damage. My wood floors were warped, the carpeting was [...]

The Military and Veteran Appreciation Discount is for ALL US Active, Reserve and National Guard Military and Veterans. We want to demonstrate our appreciation to you by offering you a $100 Military and Veteran Appreciation Discount. We want all of you to understand that we appreciate your service. How can you take advantage of this Just send us an email requesting your discount code from your .mil account. If you do not have a .mil email then email us a copy of your LES, DD214, or VA ID card. Note: if sending us an ID, LES, or 214 please blacken out your Social Security Number and any other personal information. We will safeguard your email and will not use it for anything else. We will send you the Military and Veteran Appreciation Discount code via email. Send your email to sales@intellecy.com to receive the discount code. With the highest respect and sincere appreciation, Emilio Vargas II Veteran Intellecy CEO & cofounder

One of the key features of the BluView Smart Water Management System is its ability to detect a leak and stop the leak early. Did you know that the average water leak insurance claim is approximately $9,000. Almost 1 in 2 homes (a bit over 40% to be clear) have had an insurance claim because of a water leak. Every day there are over 14,000 claims made for water leaks. With homes getting older and the rush to finish new homes faster, water damage has become the most frequent cause of insurance claims. Cause of Loss (2014) % of claims Water Damage 34% Wind 27% Fire 26% Theft 2.5% Source: Insurance Information Institute Plumbing fails for 3 reasons: joints fail because of poor workmanship fluctuating water pressure weaken joints and stress pipe walls water disinfectants and particles degrade the pipe. Water is very destructive. Leaks damage your property, destroy your memories and can affect your health by causing mold (and stress). An equally important benefit that BluView delivers is water savings. Prices for drinking water have been continually increasing. Increasing demand for water and increasing maintenance costs of water infrastructure are the cause. With water prices steadily increasing at an average [...]

Plumbing

Are you dealing with a dripping faucet, low water pressure, or clogged pipe? You’re probably tempted to call a professional plumber, and with good reason. Homeowners usually don’t have the necessary skills for a DIY plumbing job. plumbing tips They can even make matters worse in the end, triggering thousands [...]

It is estimated that about 20% of homes have a main service line leak between the water meter in the street and the home. Short run pipes between the home and meter are just as susceptible to leaks as long run pipes. So don't be swayed by the distance between [...]

Keeping an eye on your water usage is a good way to save money and help the planet at the same time. Plenty of us have bad habits that could be costing us hundreds of dollars in water bills over the long run. Here are a few ways that you [...]

In response to the many requests, we have put together this plumbing maintenance checklist to help you identify and avoid potential problems with your home's plumbing. We invite you to download this checklist for your use. To download, click here > Plumbing Preventative Maintenance Checklist Check our podcast for the 3 [...]

July 2019

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission claims Samsung's phones aren't as waterproof as advertised. An Australian government watchdog agency is taking Samsung to court over claims that the company's Galaxy phones are [...]

March 2019

Not too long ago, maybe you remember, most at-home tasks were done by hand. From vacuuming the carpet and cooking dinner to turning on the lights and adjusting the temperature in the room, all the day-to-day domestic [...]